General Questions about Ritterkeuz des Eisernen Kreuzes

[Meme32]

Dear Members of the forum;


I am considering for a few months to purchase a Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes. ( I would especially enjoy a Ritterkreuz awarded to a Luftwaffe Pilot)
Please what reference book do you suggest me ?

I am also surprised "how easy" is it to find a Ritterkreuz, i mean if you are ok to pay from 8000 to 12000 Eur you can find more than 20 available Ritterkreuz at any times by looking on the main dealers websites.
Compared to the Gold Star of Hero of the Soviet Union; it is not difficult to find.

I think 7313 people were awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes during WW2 ( 12.000 People were awarded the titel of Hero of Soviet Union), this low numbers of awardees triggers some questions for me :

1) From your knowledge, would it be possible/frequent that an awardee would have many crosses and not only one ?
2) I guess the producers manufactures many more Ritterkreuz than the 7313, do you have any idea of the volume of Ritterkreuz really manufactured before May 1945 ?

Many thanks to all the expert for sharing their knowledge.

Regards